Temporary Protected Status (TPS): Ukraine

TPS Основи Для Українців

Міністерство внутрішньої безпеки визначає країну як таку що підлягає під дію для статусу тимчасового перебування (TPS), коли умови в країні тимчасово не дозволяють громадянам країни безпечно повернутися через певні обставини, або коли країна не в змозі належним чином прийняти своїх громадян. Після того, як міністерство внутрішньої безпеки визначає іноземну країну для TPS, у Федеральному реєстрі публікується оголошення з викладенням вимог та процедур. Служба громадянства та імміграції США (USCIS) надає TPS громадянам певних країн, які вже перебувають у Сполучених Штатах. 3 березня 2022 р. уряд США повідомив, що громадяни України зможуть отримати TPS. Офіційне повідомлення опубліковано в державному реєстрі 19 квітня 2022 р.: federalregister.gov. Служба імміграції та громадянства США (USCIS) приймає заявки громадян України на видачу TPS.

What is TPS and how to apply for it

On April 19, 2022, USCIS opened the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program for Ukrainian nationals who arrived in the U.S. on or before April 11, 2022 and have resided in country since. The TPS status is given for 18 months, through October 19, 2023. With the TPS status, you will remain in the US legally and may apply for work authorization and enroll your children in school. You may also travel outside the U.S. with a permission of the immigration service (“Advanced Parole”).

​You are eligible to apply for TPS if you are a Ukrainian national who arrived in the U.S. on or before April 11, 2022, have lived in the U.S. since and do not have convictions for serious crimes. People who arrived in the U.S. on a tourist visa, humanitarian parole, or are in the process of seeking asylum can apply for TPS.

​The timeframe for processing TPS applications for Ukraine is not yet known, but expected to be 3-5 months.

​It is yet unknown whether the TPS designation for Ukraine will be extended beyond October 19, 2023. Historically, the U.S. has repeatedly extended such designation for some countries with ongoing humanitarian crises. If this happens for Ukraine, persons who have attained a TPS status will be able to extend it beyond 18 months.

​You can apply for TPS online, or by mail. If you are submitting forms I-131 – Application for Travel Document or I-912 – Request for Fee Waiver, you may not be able to apply online and will have to apply by mail.

How to apply

To apply for TPS, for each family member who arrived from Ukraine:

Fill our an application for TPS

Fill out form I-821 – Application for Temporary Protected Status. The filing fee for this form is $50. Add $85 for biometric services (children under 14 years old do not have to pay the biometric fee).

  • Complete sections 1-3 and 7-11 (sections 4-6 are required only for late filings and don’t apply at this time).
  • If a question does not apply to you, type “N/A.”
  • For items 2-3 in section 7, use the last sheet or attach additional sheets if the responses about the countries you visited don’t fit. Print the applicant’s name on top of each additional sheet, indicate what section and question it responds to, and sign and date it.
  • If you have answered YES to any eligibility question in Section 7, attach additional sheets with an explanation and a certified translation of all relevant police, court or other documents showing what happened. If you cannot attach official documents, provide a signed explanation of the reasons.

Fill out an application for work authorization

If the applicant needs permission to work and has not yet applied for employment authorization, fill out form I-765 – Application for Employment Authorization Document. See instructions in the Documents section. The filing fee for this form is $410 (children under 14 years old and seniors older than 65 are exempt from the filing fee if submitting I-765 together with a TPS application).

Fill out an application for Advance Parole

If the applicant wants to be able to travel outside the U.S. while on TPS, submit also form I-131 – Application for Travel Document to receive an Advance Parole. The filing fee for this form is $575.

Fill out a request for Fee Waiver

If you cannot afford to pay the fees for the forms and biometric services, attach also form I-912 – Request for Fee Waiver. Prepare one form for the entire family and make copies to attach to each person’s application. See instructions in the Documents section. Be thorough in explaining your inability to pay the fees – you cannot appeal a denial of the fee waiver!

Attach the following documents

  1. A copy of the Ukrainian passport (page with the photograph and page with the stamp showing entry in the U.S., if any);
  2. A copy of I-94 (front and back);
  3. 2 passport-type photos (if applying for employment authorization via form I-765)
  4. Certified translations of the marriage certificate and child birth certificates (if filing form I-912 for the entire family);
  5. Proof of residence in the U.S.: a rental agreement, a utility bill in your name, the letter from a welfare agency or DMV showing your name and address or any other official documents showing that you currently live in the U.S. If you do not yet have any “official” documents, submit a letter explaining the situation and attach what you have: a free housing voucher, the letter from a friend or relative with whom you are staying or your correspondence with the landlord who allowed you to stay at their place;
  6. A check for the combined filing fee addressed to “United States Department of Homeland Security” – if you are NOT including a Request for Fee Waiver (form I-912).
If applying by mail, send all forms and supporting documents to the appropriate address. If you live in Minnesota, mail to:

USCIS Phoenix Lockbox
U.S. Postal Service (USPS):
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Attn: TPS Ukraine
P.O. Box 24047
Phoenix, AZ 85074-4047

FedEx, UPS, or DHL:
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Attn: TPS Ukraine (Box 24047)
1820 E. Skyharbor Circle S, Suite 100
Phoenix, AZ 85034-4850

If you have moved since you filed any applications with USCIS, change your address via form AR-11 – Change of Address or your USCIS online account! Include the receipt number for any pending cases with USCIS with your address change request. Otherwise USCIS will mail all correspondence and documents to your old address!

If you need the help of an attorney in filling out the forms, contact Immigration Law Center of Minnesota or  Lawyers for Good Government.

On May 19, 2022, ILCM went live on Facebook with Arrive Ministries, and The Advocates for Human Rights, and the Ukrainian American Community Center of Minnesota to discuss different options for Ukrainians seeking assistance in the United States. Austen Soare from ILCM spoke on Ukraine Temporary Protected Status (TPS), Hanne Sandison from The Advocates of Human Rights talked about asylum, and Christine Phillips from Arrive Ministries discussed family based petitions.  Watch here: https://fb.watch/d7tYgigRE6/ Інформація українською мовою з Центру імміграційного права Міннесоти.

Юридична інформація від LINU для людей, які хочуть потрапити в США внаслідок війни в Україні.